Brush Strokes
by Godess The Hyper Fangirl
Summary: Years after the death of his mother, Ichigo doesn't seem to be getting over it. It is decided against his will that he will enroll in art class as an outlet. When he finds out Uryuu is in the class, it becomes a while new ball game.
1. Chapter 1

**Title: **Brush Strokes

**Rating: **PG-13

**Series: **Bleach

**Pairing: **IchixIshi

NEEEEEEEW FANFICTION. I wanted to write more Bleach fan fiction so here it is. Plus it's the only one I had an idea for. Well, this was supposed to be for Gravitation but I couldn't seem to figure out how it would work. Then I got to thinking about how it would work with Bleach and I enjoyed it much more. Do not worry my people who look to me for Gravitation or Ouran! There will be another! Just whenever I get a plot for one xP So here you go!

Enjoy!

* * *

Ichigo sat outside the office of his guidance councilor. He watched as people came in and out of the office. People came out crying, people came out enraged, one guy even came out in handcuffs. He sort of wondered about the sanity of the people in the school. Then he remembered he was a fine one to talk. He kind of wondered why he was even there, they called him out of class and everything. Yet, he figured if it was an emergency he would be gone by now. This made him more anxious because he could not seem to figure out what he was there for. He looked at the pamphlets on the rack beside his chair. Everyone was all happy and smiling. He didn't blame them, he'd be happy to get out of the hell hole known as high school, too. People weren't exactly the friendliest. Sure he had some friends, but he barely called them friends. They were just people he hung around with. In highschool, that was everything. If he didn't hang around with anyone, he'd be a loner. If he did, he'd be judged by them. He didn't really care, although he kind of wished he could be left alone to eat in peace for one day. Every day they seemed to somehow find him. Nobody seemed to be very special to him. Sure they were nice people, but none of them really stood out to him. At least not yet.

His thoughts were interrupted when his councilor called him into his office. He stood and walked in, hands in his pockets. He stood there until the councilor told him to sit down, and then he followed the directions. "I got a call from your father," he began. This meeting wasn't starting very well, and he had a feeling it wasn't going to get any better. "He feels like you're still not over the death of your mother when you need to start moving on. While the death of a loved on is painful we've decided you aren't making any good progress."

"So? Why does it matter?" he replied simply, "It really is a personal problem." And he was right, it was a very personal problem. While everyone in his family had been hurt by it, Ichigo had never been the same since. He'd changed so drastically it wasn't a big stretch for his family to be worried about him.

"While that is true, the request was made by your father," the councilor pointed out.

"Yea well, Dad has a habit of over reacting," he shrugged and looked away from him. Couldn't he just leave now? He had a feeling there was still something the councilor had to tell him.

"Whether that may be true or not, we've decided we're going to switch one of your classes to art class. I know it sounds cheesy but it really is a good outlet if you have some bottled up emotions you don't feel comfortable expressing to anyone," the councilor explained. Ichigo didn't really want to express his emotions period.

"Do I get a choice?" he finally asked.

"No."

He sighed, "Fine then, can I go now?"

"Yes, we're finished here," the councilor replied and went to his computer. Ichigo stood up and left, he didn't know whether to be mad at the school or mad at his dad. Or to be mad at both, he wasn't too sure. Either way he knew there was no escaping the fate known as art class. He knew the guys who thought they were hard asses would be all over him for this one. It wasn't anything he hadn't experienced before, though, but those were times he wanted to erase from his memory.

Soon he was sitting in the classroom, observing his surroundings. It was unlike the other rooms and had a warehouse feel. This was understandable, since it was where they used to have auto shop. The teacher was also not like the other teachers. All the other teachers dressed very professionally, while he was very casual and didn't seem to care how he looked. Ichigo liked that about him. Ichigo had been the first one to arrive at the large classroom, but it soon began to fill up. He didn't realize how many people were actually in the class. He recognized many people from his other classes. He recognized one girl from his English class, and one guy from his Biology class, and hey, that guy kinda looked like..no, it couldn't be, could it? No, there was no denying it. There would only be one student who would come into a class and begin to cross stitch. "Oi, Uryuu," he called to him.

Uryuu sat up a bit, his composure indicating he was confused. Either that or he was hoping he hadn't heard him. He turned around, "What do you want, Kurosaki? Since when do you take this class?"

"Since now, does it matter?" he replied. He was the only person he knew in the class, so he decided maybe if he tried to be social he could get out of it.

"Sure it does, I never expected to see someone like you here," he replied, pushing up his glasses. Ichigo wondered why he didn't get a new pair if those kept falling off his nose.

"I could say the same, why are you here?" he asked.

Uryuu shrugged, "I supposed it's more socially acceptable for males to be in normal art than in home economics and whatnot."

"So, you shouldn't care what other people think," he replied, "Makes life a lot easier."

"Sorry that I can't be you," he turned back around. As class began Ichigo wondered what he meant by that. He was very confused because he hadn't said it in a cold way, it was almost like he was sad or longing. This was very unusual for Uryuu, since he typically didn't display emotions. That was something the both of them had in common, whether they wanted to admit it or not. Ichigo snapped out of his daze to hear the teacher talking about their summative assignment they'd be working on over the course of the class. They'd be painting a mural somewhere in the school. The only instruction was for it to be an expression involving colours, as in the message had to be conveyed through them. He said that class would be completely devoted to the assignment. Everyone was assigned wall space so they would be better able to plan what they wanted to do. Coincidentally or not, his and Uryuu's were beside each other. He cursed in his head when he discovered this, hoping he'd be able to work alone. Actually he didn't plan on working at all, that was the problem. Uryuu would _make _him work, he just knew. And his suspicion was not wrong. "What are you doing, Kurosaki?" he asked him when he noticed that he was sitting down, back to the wall.

"Sleeping, what does it look like?" he yawned and put his hands behind his head, slowly shutting his eyes. That is, until he was stabbed by a pencil. "Ow! What was that for?!" he looked over suddenly. It didn't really hurt, he was just more startled than anything.

"You need to work or you won't pass the course. Haven't you even thought of what you will do?" he scolded him. He was worse than his dad.

"Sure I did. I don't need to stare at a blank wall for an entire class. It's not like it's going to spontaneously get up and walk away anyways," he went to close his eyes again, only to be poked by the sharp pencil once more. Okay, that time it hurt a bit. This time he ignored him, only to get poked over and over and over at intervals of ten-seconds. "Would you stop that?!" he snapped, finally acknowledging the other.

"Only when you start working," he said simply, already starting to sketch things onto the wall.

"Why do you even care?" he finally asked the million dollar question.

"Am I not allowed?" he shot back, not looking over to him.

"No, you're not. We're supposed to be enemies, remember?" he replied, standing up. His leg was starting to fall asleep, "Although Orhime wants us to be 'frenemies'."

"'Frenemies'..? I'm not even going to ask.." he shook his head as he stared at his sketches.

"Either way you're not usually concerned with me."

"Well, if we're going to be spending a lot of time together for this course we may as well not ignore each other," he said simply.

"I guess....but don't expect me to be too happy about it," he stared at his wall space.

"You don't have to be, but it would be nice," he looked over to him finally.

"And yet again I ask why do you care so much?!" it was starting to frustrate him.

He shrugged, "Maybe I'm different than you think I am."

"Quit talking in riddles and just come out with it," he scowled. if you looked closely you could probably see steam coming out his ears.

"Look, all I'm saying is you need to look at yourself for the answer," he said.

"I don't get it.."

"I didn't expect you would. We're more similar than you think, Kurosaki. You just have to figure it out." Hadn't he just been thinking of that?

"Are you implying that there's a real and fake you?" he said after a long time thinking.

"We have a winner," he said, crossing his arms.

"I didn't expect that from you, to be honest. You always seemed to confident," he replied.

"That's the point. You weren't _supposed _to know."

"Why don't you be yourself, then?" he asked, crossing his arms as well and mirroring his movements.

"Why don't you?"

"How do you know that I'm not being me?" he replied, "Am I unbelievable?"

"I just have a feeling is all. No one is always angry," he went back to sketching on the well. Now Ichigo only had one question going through his mind. How could he, of all people, be the only one to see right through him? With that, he stared at the blank wall, his mind blank as well.

**~END CHAPTER 1~**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2 is heeeeeere~ I have so many things I want to do with this fic and it's hard to put them all together, but I shall! Just for you, oh loyal readers!

Enjoy!

* * *

"Ichigo, you have to do the mural project or you'll fail the course. No exceptions."

Ichigo scowled a bit, "Well if I try I'm going to fail anyways, so what would be the point?"

"How do you know if you don't? Uryuu is beside you, yes? I'm sure he can help," the teacher said, going back to marking. Of course Uryuu could help, if the size of his head reflected his knowledge he wouldn't be able to stand up. He would be like one of those anime plush dolls with the big heads and tiny bodies. The only thing was he didn't _want _to ask Uryuu, he didn't want him to know that he needed his help.

"There's nothing else I can do? I didn't want to be in this class, sir," he said, leaning on the desk.

"Nothing. Now I suggest you use the rest of this period to work if you're having so much trouble," the teacher didn't look at him at all. Ichigo frowned and left, what was he supposed to do now? He made sure before he left he grabbed some paint, red and black. He didn't know what he was going to do with it but he would figure it out. As he walked down the hall he stared at the paint, thinking maybe something would jump out and bite him. Alas, he had nothing. When he got to his wall area Uryuu had already begun painting. Where had the time gone? Either Ichigo was losing track of time or Uryuu just worked fast.

"What took you so long?" he looked over when Ichigo came closer.

"I was talking to the teacher," he mumbled, staring at his still blank wall space.

"Didn't let you get out of the assignment, huh?" he smirked, only to be med with a paint tube to the head, "Hey!"

"Shuddup," he retrieved the tube and squirted a blob onto the newspaper on the floor. As he went to stand, he slid on one of the pieces of newspaper. He began to fall, and guess where he landed? Right on top of Uryuu. Ichigo turned red and Uryuu blinked at him.

"Well, this is a bit of a cliche situation now isn't it?" Uryuu said, looking over and pushing up his glasses. he stared at Ichigo's arm, which was right beside his head. Ichigo's big, strong, muscular arm...

"Oi! Are you checking me out?!"

"W-What?! No not at all!!!! It's not like that!!!!" despite his yelling, Uryuu wasn't struggling. Ichigo noticed how weak he looked. Sure he wasn't the most built guy in the world, but he looked frail. Almost like he could break him with the slightest touch.

"Are you feeling alright?" he suddenly said while Uryuu was rambling.

"Huh?" he stopped and looked up at him, "Yea, why?"

"No reason...." he didn't get to say much else as they both of them heard a shocked gasp. They looked over to see the secretary staring at them, the attendance sheets on the floor.

"What do you two think you're doing?! That is inappropriate behavior!!!!! To the principals office RIGHT NOW!!!! AND KEEP YOUR CLOTHING ON!!!" she ran off. It was then they realized that they were still on top of each other, and in the midst of falling Ichigo was loosing his pants. This was going to be fun to explain.

******

"So..let me get this straight..."

"You've tried to get it straight the last five times you've said it."

"Don't you interrupt me you testosterone ridden teenager! Ahem...so, you were found on the floor..."

"Yea."

"On top of another student..."

"Yea."

"Who happens to be male..."

"Yea."

"Engaging in what looked to be the start of sexual activity?"

"And for the fifth time, we weren't going to have sex. I fell."

"Right...look Ichigo, your record isn't exactly squeaky clean. I'm going to have to suspend you," the principal turned around in his chair, "we can't be having that kind of conduct at school."

"So? Keigo and some chick were sucking face the other day and they just got a detention. Why do I get a suspension?" he crossed his arms.

"Because your violations have added up. The first times you've broken the rules you've gotten detention, but now you obviously need more serious punishment," the principal replied, leaning forward and resting his head onto his hands. '_Bullshit' _Ichigo thought to himself, '_I know exactly why I'm getting suspended, don't even try and hide it.'_

"Whatever," he replied, "can I go now?" He wanted to leave before he lost his temper, which was often the reason he got into so much trouble.

"You may go. Your father should be here any time now to pick you up." Fanfuckingtastic. Ichigo left the office and headed to his locker. By the looks he was getting it seemed that news travelled fast. He decided to keep his mind occupied and ignore the other students. He wondered if Uryuu was going to be suspended, too. He figured he'd probably ask once he came back from his suspension. He got the things out of his locket and found a note inside. All it said was 'Will you be home around 8?', but he knew it was Uryuu's hand writing. He was the only guy he knew who wrote in cursive, and damn good cursive at that. He wrote that he would be and on his way by Uryuu's locker he dropped it off. he didn't know if he'd already been but it was worth a shot.

Once he got to the front of the school his father was already there. He quietly got into the car, buckled up, and they left. It was a long, awkward drive until finally Isshin spoke. "So....your school called," he said.

"Obviously.." he muttered, looking out the window.

"They said you were in quite the predicament with another male student," he continued. His voice was calm...too calm. What was he thinking? If it was one person he wanted to be able to read the mind of, it was his father. He was quite the strange one.

"Yea, but it's not as bad as it sounds I swe-"

"How could you do this to me Ichigo?!?!?!" he sobbed, still driving.

"I didn't do anything!!!!" he yelled back at him.

"How will I get any precious grandchildren if your seed is going into another male!!!!!!" he cried dramatically, putting his face in his hands.

"Oi!!! Watch the road dumbass!!!!" he grabbed the wheel before they were met with sudden doom.

"Please tell me you'll look into surrogacy!!!! Please please!!!! I must have my grandchildren!!!" he cried, focusing on his driving again but still pulling out the waterworks.

"It's not like that!!! Besides, have you forgotten you have two daughters?!" he was pretty sure he already knew the answer, and he was right.

"But you're my first born!! My first born son!!! You have to carry on the Kurosaki name!" he said proudly, posing in a dramatic pose as much as he could with his hands on the wheel. Ichigo bashed his head against the window, he just wanted to lock himself in his room until the suspension was over. And that's exactly what he did, as soon as they got home he went to his room and stayed there.

When Uryuu showed up he was directed up to Ichigo's room with the warning that he was in a bad mood. He figured it was nothing he couldn't handle, but he had to talk. He knocked on the door and was met with a not-so-welcoming 'Come in'. He poked his head in, "Can we talk?"

"We're talking now aren't we?" Ichigo was on his bed, staring at the ceiling. He wouldn't admit it, but he was already bored.

Uryuu rolled his eyes and walked in, closing the door behind him, "So, I heard you got suspended."

"That I did. It's no big deal," he replied.

"So did I. How would they suspend me?! I've never done anything wrong!" he sulked, sitting on his computer chair.

"I'll give you one good guess," he looked over to him, "It's called we corrupted their precious morals. No problem if some chick gets knocked up, but you can't have two guys going at it. Oh no, that's horrible."

"Point taken. That's what I came to talk to you about, though..." Ichigo noticed he seemed a lot different then he had been the past few days. He almost seemed very nervous about everything. "How did you feel about that?" he asked him.

"Well, I'll admit it was kind of awkward, but not as awkward as I expected it to be," he replied, "It was kind of funny."

"Did it mean anything to you?" The room was silent, it was a pretty deep question. Ichigo thought about it, did it mean anything to him? Now that he thought about it, it did seem like it evoked more emotion that it would just normally falling over onto someone by accident.

"I guess...but I don't really understand it if you want to know the truth," he admitted, "And don't expect me to spill out anything else!"

"Fine fine, I just wanted to let you know that even if it didn't mean a lot to you, it meant a lot to me. Even if it was an accident," he pushed up his glasses and looked away.

"Alright, why are you admitting all this to me?" he sat up, he had to get down to business now.

"Does it matter why? You'll find out eventually," he said, "but right now that's all you need to know."

"So are you saying you're in love with me?" he went over to him.

"Maybe I am, maybe I'm not. I just wanted you to know that," he looked up at him. Before either of them could think, Ichigo had leaned in and kissed him. You read that correctly, Ichigo did that. Ichigo couldn't believe he'd done that, it was more of a spur of the moment thing. He pulled away and they stared at each other, panting. It was a long, passionate kiss. More so than Ichigo had planned.

"Well?"

"Well what?" Uryuu had a puzzled expression on his face.

"Did you..y'know..feel anything. I was experimenting," he replied.

"Of course I did dumbass, have you been listening to what I've been saying?!"

"Geeze calm down, I was just making sure you weren't tricking me or something," he replied.

"Well you would be angry to if your emotions were played with," he replied, pissed. Although he did have a good point.

"Look..I guess I'll think about it okay? That's already a lot to think about for one day..." Ichigo scratched the back of his head, confused about everything he'd ever known now. He'd always liked girls, and it was always the acceptable thing to like girls. Because you meet a girl, you fall in love, you get married, and most importantly you make babies (according to his father, this particular point was the law of the universe). He'd never once considered an attraction to men. Although it would make sense, animals in the wild do it all the time. So why couldn't he...right? He suddenly got some images he would rather not have had.

"I suppose that's all I can ask for," Uryuu stood up, "Just keep it in the back of your head I guess."

"Trust me, I won't stop thinking about this for a long time," he said as he showed Uryuu out.

*****

His time away from school became much more interesting after that. He kept thinking over and over to himself about how he felt, how he really was. He figured he'd already had his identity crisis, but he didn't know shit until he came face to face with doubts about his sexuality. He figured he was just a plain old straight dude. The more he thought about it, the more he felt like he swung both ways. He remembered that one time in sixth grade he had a crush on a guy and a girl, but he never admitted either because he didn't realize he was actually crushing on the guy like he did the girl. Besides, he was a masculine guy. Masculine guys weren't supposed to like other guys, it was like it was written in a guy code book. All these arguments raced through Ichigo's head, but he wouldn't realize how he truly was until he arrived at school.

When he got to school, the gossiping had been worse. People were now actually coming up to him and asking him questions. The guys weren't so nice, however most of them were too cowardly to take Ichigo on. The girls were mostly curious. He had quickly figured out that while guys are turned on by girls going at it, girls were turned on by guys going at it. It wasn't exactly something he needed to know. When he cot to his locker he could tell it had been vandalized due to the fresh paint smell emitting from it. He opened it up and dropped off his things before heading to class. He knew that he could at least still talk to his friends, right? Well, he knew at least Orihime would still talk to him, she didn't really care much about anything. That and she had a crush on him since forever. He sat down at his desk just as the bell rang for class to start. It was then that he noticed Uryuu wasn't there. It was unheard of for him to be late, never mind the thought of him being absent. "Hey, Orihime, where's Uryuu?" he asked her as she passed by to go to her desk.

"Haven't you heard?" she blinked as if the answer should have been obvious.

"Of course he hasn't heard, he hasn't been here!" Tatsuki scolded her, shaking her head.

"Oh yea, well Uryuu's sick," she said simply and headed to her desk.

"Sick? What did he catch?" Ichigo frowned. If he was suspended he shouldn't have been exposed to many germs.

"Orihime keeps forgetting it's more serious than an illness. As in, he had heart problems," Tatsuki answered him.

"What..?" he was dumbstruck, heart problems? Heart problems were always serious.

"Yea, apparently his heart stopped and he's been in the hospital for a while now."

Suddenly, Ichigo knew exactly why he'd come to see him the other night.

**~END CHAPTER 2~**


	3. Chapter 3

Instead of doing math homework I WROTE FANFICTION! Oh yes, you can thank me now. AND LOOK. SOME HOW SMEX THAT I CUT OFF JUST WHEN IT WAS GETTING GOOD. I'm an asshole aren't I?

Enjoy.

* * *

"Are you serious?" Ichigo couldn't believe it. He had actually been staring for quite some time before he replied to Tatsuki. It all made sense to him now. He was extremely confused as to why Uryuu would make such a confession, but it made sense that he would because he knew he was dying. Of course, Uryuu was too pride to admit he was broken in some way. So it simply seemed like he came over on a whim.

"You dumbass, have you even been listening?! Why would I make something like this up!" Tatsuki raged, but the teacher ordered her to go to go her seat. She glared at Ichigo and went to sit down. Ichigo couldn't pay attention the entire lesson, his mind was all jumbled up with a million thoughts yet he couldn't seem to properly process any of them. Everything suddenly had a whole new meaning to him. Was he really in love with him? Nah, he couldn't be, they were too different. Then again, the closest emotion to love is hate. It wouldn't be that far fetched if you looked at the big picture. Lost in his thoughts, he didn't even notice the fact that it was lunch time.

"Kurosaki...? Ichigo?" the teacher said to him softly, she was afraid to scare him.

"Huh...?" he looked over, "What's the problem?"

"It's lunch time....and I'd like to go eat my lunch," she replied sheepishly.

".." he got up and left. That was definitely not the most productive period. He went to his locker and bashed his head against it to try and get his brain to work, then he opened it and stared. He knew there was no chance in hell that he would make it through the rest of the day. He grabbed his stuff and left for the hospital, he needed to see for himself. He couldn't believe that this was true, although he knew in the back of his mind that it was. He walked all the way over, the walk taking about a half an hour. Once he arrived it was fairly quiet since any lunch rush had blown over already. It made him feel a little less nervous being there. He went up to the front desk, the secretary didn't look very happy. "Uh..can you tell me what room Uryuu Ishida is in? I heard he was here."

The secretary looked up, and then back down again, "Shouldn't you be in school?"

"I uh...have a spare," he quickly pulled an excuse out of his ass.

The secretary sighed, annoyed. It was like she was angry that he expected her to do work even though it was her job. She checked in the computer and gave him the room, "And if you're as annoying as you look, remember to be quiet."

"I could tell you where to go, but I won't. Thank you," he left, and the secretary looked offended. He waited for the elevator and got in. He then remembered why he typically took the stairs. There were quite a few characters you could meet in an elevator, and no matter how empty it could be everywhere else it was always full. There was the guy who hasn't showered in weeks, and there's the woman who cares so much about BO she wears perfume to mask it. Unfortunately she wears a little too much perfume. Then there's the parent whose baby was perfectly quiet while waiting, but as soon as they get in the elevator they start screaming like they're being murdered. And lastly, there's the kid who decides the perfect place to wipe his booger is on your pants, and if you yell at the kid their gigantic father will beat your head in. The icing on the cake was Ichigo had to stand in this cramped elevator all the way up to the ninth floor. Now I bet you're thinking, won't people get out? Well of course, but for every one person who leaves three more get on. Finally Ichigo reached his destination. He flew out of the elevator, taking in the fresh hospital scent. It may not have been the best smell but it was better than in the elevator. He then looked around and headed down the hall. Once he got to Uryuu's room, he froze. Why was he suddenly so nervous? It's not like he had been horribly burned in a fire and he was going to look like something from Area 51. Yet, his heart raced and he couldn't seem to catch his breath. He put his hand on the doorknob and slowly turned before opening the door slightly, not even enough for a mouse to get through.

"Come in," said a voice from inside the room. Ichigo froze. Was that him? He sounded tired. Ichigo slowly opened the door enough for him poke his head inside. "I don't bite you know," he looked at him, pushing up his glasses. At least some things never change.

"Fine, fine. You caught me," he walked into the room and closed the door behind him, "How do you feel?"

"Like shit," he replied honestly. Brutally, but honestly. Unfortunately Ichigo couldn't argue with him. If he felt as bad as he looked, he must have been feeling horrible. He wasn't going to point it out, though, it would be like telling a girl she looked fat in those jeans. Plus when someone's in the hospital you want to cheer them up, not make them feel worse. He just looked so frail and breakable, even more so than the other day. It looked like he'd lost a lot of weight. He also looked like he hadn't slept in a while, too. The environment also didn't help the situation. The clean white walls, sheets....everything. The heart monitor beep beep beeped and the IV dripped even doses into the tube. It was all really creepy and Ichigo figured out this way why he probably wouldn't follow in his fathers footsteps and become a doctor.

"Well...at least you're alive right?" he tried to look on the bright side as he pulled up a chair and sat down.

"I guess. Not like it's the first time though," he looked away from him.

"Care to explain?" Ichigo was curious now, Uryuu had a way of teasing his curiosity.

"I've been in and out of hospitals my whole life. I was forced to pick up things quickly or else I would never get through school. See, having a heart problem isn't like having, say, a liver problem. You can donate a liver and still be fully functioning. You can't donate a heart on a whim, you need that to live. It's very difficult to get one for a transplant. I've been waiting sixteen years, some people have been waiting longer," he explained to him, still not looking him in the eye.

"So...how come you can fight hollows and stuff? Wouldn't that be dangerous because it's putting on strain?" Ichigo questioned him.

"You're going to have risks no matter what you do. You may as well not walk on pins and needles all the time," he finally looked over to him, "I know it sounds cheesy but you have to just live life and not worry much about it or else you'd have a crappy life."

_Kind of like how I've been dwelling on Mom... _Ichigo thought to himself, "So is this why you came to see me the other day? Because you knew something was wrong?" Uryuu didn't answer him. "Well?"

"I thought I would die this time," he said simply.

"I thought you were just talking about keeping your chin up?" Ichigo frowned, "Sounds kind of hypocritical."

"You shouldn't be oblivious to the fact that you're gunna die, either" he raised another good point.

"I guess you're right...but still.." he sighed.

"Still what?" Uryuu frowned.

"Nevermind, nevermind. I'm being weird."

"You're always weird."

"....Shut up."

"Ooou, I'm shaking."

"Actually, you are..." Ichigo noticed.

"Well okay, I am, but you get the point," he shook his head.

"Maybe you should lie down or something..." Ichigo suggested, "Rest up, y'know?"

"Honestly, I've been bored out of my skull. I'm not going to sleep when I actually have a guest," he crossed his arms.

"No one's come to see you?" Ichigo frowned again.

"No. I don't have any friends, remember?" he pointed out, although it didn't sound like he enjoyed that fact.

"Well what about Orihime and Tatsuki? They sounded pretty concerned..." Ichigo tried to jog his memory, maybe he'd just forgotten. He couldn't have had no visitors, that's heartless.

"Nope. Orihime keeps calling and saying she'll come but she never does. I don't think she does it on purpose, though, I think she just forgets," he pondered, looking to the ceiling.

"What about your Dad? Didn't he come by?" Ichigo asked, only to be answered with laughter. Actually it was more of a snicker.

"Thanks, I needed that. He'd only be here if he was getting money from somewhere," Uryuu replied, holding his sides.

"So you've seriously been visited by no one?" Ichigo raised an eyebrow.

"Yes! How many times do I have to say it?" That reminded Ichigo of someone from earlier today but he couldn't put his finger on who. He'd been pretty out of it most of the day.

"Sorry, sorry, am I making you feel bad?" Ichigo tried to sound sympathetic.

"No.." he muttered, but it was an obvious yes. When Uryuu looked back up, Ichigo was sitting beside him on the bed. He looked down to feel his hand in his. He looked away, embarrassed, "You're warm."

"You're cold, I guess we're a match," Ichigo smirked at him, leaning in closer.

"W..what are you doing?" he leaned away slightly, only to be pulled back in for a kiss. This time it was a little less awkward than the first.

Just as Uryuu was closing his eyes and beginning to enjoy the kiss, Ichigo pulled away. He put his hand to his mouth and coughed, "Uh...I shouldn't have done that..."

"Why not?" Uryuu frowned. He wanted more than just a kiss, dammit.

"You're not well, I don't want to..." Ichigo trailed off, not wanting to offend him.

"Don't want to what, hurt me? I'm not going to crumble in your arms you know, I'm not that fragile," he frowned at him, crossing his arms. Ichigo thought he looked like a child not getting his way. It was kind of cute when he thought of it.

"Well, if you say so. But if you hurt yourself it's not my fault.." Ichigo said, even though he knew he would still blame himself for it. He leaned in and kissed his cheek, and then his neck. He could feel Uryuu fidgeting with the buttons on his shirt, trying to get rid of anything that would get in the way of their bodies. His hands were cold, yet in a way they were warm as he felt them on his chest. Maybe it was the power of love? Perhaps he would never figure that one out. He moved from kissing his neck to kissing his mouth again, Uryuu putting his hands around Ichigo's neck, pulling him in deeper. Neither of them had ever felt so loved before that neither of them wanted to stop.

Eventually, the two finished before the nurse came to tell him it was time for bed. By that time they were both exhausted anyways, there was no need to go for another round. She frowned when she saw how flustered the two of them looked, but decided it would be in better judgment not to ask. Uryuu flopped back onto the bed, still panting. Ichigo looked over and noticed that the other was smiling at him. "Well all be damned, is that a smile I see?" Ichigo crossed his arms, he was teasing.

"Maybe it is, maybe it's not. If you tell anybody I'll kill you," he teased him back. He seemed like a completely different person now, like he had just accomplished his life dream. Ichigo thought it would be kind of creepy if his life dream was to have sex with him, though. He fell back onto the bed as well, pulling the covers up to the both of them. He then moved onto his side and wrapped his arms around his new lover, at least he hoped that was what you could call him. Right?

"Hey Uryuu..." he asked him, sounding like he wasn't quite sure if he wanted to ask.

"Hmn..?" he didn't look over, it sounded like he was already falling asleep.

"Would you consider me to be your..y'know..now?" he asked. He seemed afraid to say the word for some reason or another, maybe he was afraid he would jinx it.

"What, my boyfriend?" he looked over with his eyes half open.

"Well...yea.." he admitted, scratching the back of his head.

"If that's what you want, then so be it," he rolled over weakly and gave him a quick peck before rolling back over to his other side to officially fall asleep. Ichigo stared at his body for a long time before pulling him in closer. He could hear the gentle sound of his heartbeat, the even rhythm calming him down, reassuring him that this wasn't a dream and that he was as alive as could be. Eventually, like a baby listening to its mother, Ichigo dozed off to the sound of his lover's heartbeat.

**~END CHAPTER 3~**


	4. Chapter 4

Now instead of not doing Math homework I'm not doing History homework =D Hooray. Well, I don't think I would have done it today anyways so it's not a big deal. I wanted Ryuuken to be a douchebag in this one, but that's not really anything new.

Enjoy.

* * *

Ichigo was rudely awakened the next morning by a nurse shaking him. "What do you think you're doing?" she scolded him, putting down the tray of breakfast food she was holding.

"Well..I was sleeping.." he muttered, burying his face into Uryuu, who was still asleep.

"You can't be here! It's not policy! You should be gone! Shoo!" she made hand motions to indicate he needed to leave.

"They won't know if you don't tell," he muttered as he tried to go back to sleep.

She frowned and crossed her arms, "Out, now. Or I'll have to call security."

"Go ahead, they don't scare me..." he muttered once again. The nurse stamped her foot like she was throwing a temper tantrum and stormed away.

"Hey Ichigo?" Uryuu started muttering now, just waking up.

"Yea?"

"Thanks for staying..." he rolled over so he could face him.

"You don't need to thank me for staying," he kissed him, "Now, I think you should eat." Uryuu groaned and sat up tiredly, and then poked at the food. "What's the matter?" Ichigo sat up as well.

"Hospital food looks like shit."

"Just because it looks bad doesn't mean it tastes bad," Ichigo tried some, but quickly spit it out, "...On second thought..maybe I'll go down to the coffee shop and get you a muffin or something.." He kissed him again and then headed down to get him some food. No sooner had he left, Uryuu's father Ryuuken came into the room as Uryuu was throwing out he food so it looked like he ate it.

"Why are you wasting food like that? There are people starving in third world countries," he said to him, his voice monotone as usual. He shut the door behind him after he'd come in.

"Why do you care?" he snapped back at him.

"Tsk tsk, such a temper. Is that any way to speak to your father?" he said to him, not looking him in the eyes.

"Because you only come to talk to me if you're up to something," Uryuu narrowed his eyes at him. He and his father didn't exactly get along very well, so he had was right to be suspicious.

"I'm not up to something, I've actually come to give you good news. You'll be able to have a heart transplant," he stated, "That is, on a condition." uryuu continued to stare at his father with narrowed eyes, and his father finally looked back at him. "I thought I made it clear before not to associate with soul reapers, but perhaps I didn't make myself clear. You will get the transplant, and you're not to associate with that boy again. Do I make myself clear? You'll never make something out of yourself this way, so I have to interfere," his monotone voice turned to one that said he wasn't going to take any shit, but Uryuu wasn't going to take any shit either.

"I'm not going to. I'd rather die happy then live unhappily," he stated simply, crossing his arms.

"I'm sorry, did I phrase that in the form of a question? Because I wasn't aware that I had," he shot back, "You'll have surgery tomorrow afternoon. That's final," he walked out of the room. Uryuu wasn't want to cry. He was a guy, and guys typically just sucked it up and dealt with it. This time, however, he couldn't seem to hold it in. When he was sure no one was looking he started to cry. He finally had what he wanted, he was finally happy, and he was going to lose it all.

"Hey, what's wrong..?!" Ichigo had just returned with the tasty muffin he promised to find Uryuu was crying. He was worried because he was crying, but he was also scared for the same reason.

"Ah..why are you here?" he sniffed, whiping them away, "You weren't supposed to see that."

"Well I did, so fess up," he walked over and placed the muffin on his little table.

"My dad just came by.." he began, but then stopped.

"I'm assuming this isn't going to end well?" Ichigo asked him, and Uryuu nodded.

"He said that I'll get a heart transplant but I can't see you anymore. It's non optional," he replied, trying not to cry again in front of him. he already felt embarrassed enough that he had done it alone. Suddenly, as he was looking downwards, he heard Ichigo start to laugh. It wsn't really a laugh, though, but more of a snicker. "Hey! It's not funny!!" he yelled at him angrily, "Why are you laughing?!"

"Do you honestly think I'm afraid of him?" Ichigo shook his head, "You obviously don't know me very well. His empty threats don't scare me."

"You don't know him like I do. His threats aren't empty.." he muttered to himself as he felt Ichigo's arm around him.

"Don't worry about, let what happens happen. Like I said, I doubt he'll do anything about it. He's just trying to scare you into doing what he wants," he held him closer to him.

"Well, while that would be something out of the way that doesn't mean I'm not nervous for tomorrow," Uryuu admitted.

"You'll be fine, you're tough," he kissed his cheek, "Now eat." Uryuu frowned and reluctantly ate his muffin.

****

The following day, as said, Uryuu had to go into surgery for the transplant. The surgery would take at least four hours, so Ichigo decided it would be a good idea to go home and take a shower. He figured Uryuu would appreciate it if he smelled better. When he got home, however, his father wasn't in the good mood he usually was in. "Why didn't you go to school today?!" he demanded.

"I was visiting in the hospital," he walked by him to get some clothes.

"You can't neglect school, though," his father followed him, "Why would you do that?"

"Because it's important," he said simply.

"Ooooo were you visiting your lover~" Isshin started to go back to his usual ways.

"Shut up. I promise once this all blows over I'll go, but right now I need to be there okay?" he walked into the bathroom and shut the door in his face.

"Your teacher called though..he said he's going to fail you if you don't show up and finish your painting...."

"What?! He can't do that!" Ichigo swung the door open again.

"Well actually he can..." Isshin pointed out.

"Fine then, he can fail me," he went to close the door then, "This is more important than that."

"Maybe you can find an alternative?" his father suggested.

"What do you mean...?" he slowly opened the door again.

"Instead of doing the mural at school, maybe you can do one at the hospital. I heard last time it was my turn in the ER they were looking for someone to paint one in the kids ward," he informed in, "I could call your teacher and the hospital and try to work something out."

"You would do that..?" he asked, almost sounding suspicious of his father.

He shrugged, "Not all parents are emotionless robots, I know what love is like."

"Heh...thanks dad..." he finally went in to take his shower. Once he was finished, he still had a lot of time left. So he asked Yuzu to help him make some food to take with him so that Uryuu wouldn't have to eat the hospital food. He then headed back to the hospital to see what was going on there. He was informed that Uryuu had just come out of surgery and would be asleep for a while. So he labeled all the food and put it into the fridge. He then went over to Uryuu's room. However, he stood there like he had the first time. His heart was racing again, he was nervous about what he would see when he walked in. Would it be worse then before? He figured that he'd never know unless he went in. On the count of three he slowly went in and shut the door behind him quietly. He then went over to the bed and sat beside him. It made him sad to see how many contraptions Uryuu was hooked up to. he had the IV's for medication, and he had a breathing tube to help with air. He also had tubes in his chest, which Ichigo assumed from experience were to ensure proper drainage of fluids. That wasn't the worst part for Ichigo, though. The worst part was how much pain it looked like he was in. Despite being on medication, that didn't mean he wouldn't experience a fair amount of discomfort.

It was still a bit before Uryuu woke up, but when he did Ichigo was the first thing he saw when his vision cleared. Well, as much as it could without his glasses that is. He coughed a bit, and realized how much that hurt and winced. He immediately tried to sit up to find his glasses out of habit. "No no, stay down.." Ichigo pushed him back down gently, "You're going to hurt yourself."

"I feel terrible..." he said, his voice quiet and raspy.

"No offense, but you look pretty bad too," Ichigo commented. Uryuu attempted to smack him, but it was more of a tap than anything. "I made some food, so at least you won't have to eat that hospital crap," he tried to look on the bright side.

"Thanks..." he said to him, closing his eyes since he was still drowsy.

"Dad said he's going to call and see if I can do my art project here so I don't fail the course," Ichigo decided to start a conversation. He placed a hand on his, and Uryuu held it.

"Oh yea, they wanted someone for the pediatric ward right?" Uryuu opened his eyes agin, but only half way.

Ichigo nodded, "Yea, so I can work on it and be here with you."

"You really don't have to..you'll get behind on school," Uryuu sounded like he felt bad.

"So? You'll have to as well. We can catch up together," he shrugged, "It's not a big deal. If all else fails we'll go to summer school."

"S..Summer school? If I go to summer school I'll be teaching it!" he raised his voice, but became quickly out of breath.

"Don't worry too much about it, we'll deal with that once you're well again. Right now you need to focus on resting and getting better," he told him, "or I'll have to beat some sense into you."

"Abuse much?" Uryuu teased, "I don't want to have to call the cops on you."

"Very funny," he kissed his forehead, "I need to make sure you know I haven't turned into a complete softie."

"I think it's a little too late for that," Uryuu yawned.

"As long as you don't tell," Ichigo warned him.

"What, you don't want your precious tough boy reputation to be tarnished? I had this fear that once I got out you would act as if everything here never happened. Am I going to be right?" Uryuu looked him in the eyes, indicating he was serious.

"No, you're not. I'm just not used to it is all," he sighed, "I promise that I love you and other people won't cause me to act differently. If they don't like it then tough shit."

"Alright..I trust you..." he started to doze off again. Ichigo had to admit, it was hard to see him this way. He figured that while it wasn't exactly great to be upset, that was a good thing. Why, might you ask? Simple, it meant that he really did care about him. That there was no doubt in his mind that he loved him. That he knew that he would have a hard time living without him, one could say he probably couldn't. Now that he had him, there was no turning back. And from that point on, Ichigo knew it.

**~END CHAPTER 4~**


	5. Chapter 5

Woot another chapter~ Apologies for the delay, I've been really really busy. And when I wasn't busy doing something or other I was sleeping or dying, whatever came first. Originally this chapter was too short(in my opinion) so I added them having some smexy fun. It's still shorter than usual but I wanted it to end where it did and in order for it to do that I had to cut it a bit short. I tried to add more bits here and there but eventually you have to stop or it looks messy.

Enjoy!

* * *

Ichigo stood in front of the blank wall before him, feeling the same thing he had felt staring at the wall in the school. Absolutely nothing. To him, it was just a blank wall that no amount of creativity could change. The problem was that he had to come up with something or else he'd be in big trouble. The looming threat of having to go to therapy came over him. He definitely did not want to spend his entire summer going to therapy because everyone else in the world felt that he wasn't okay. Suddenly, he felt himself hitting his head against the wall. Perhaps he could channel its energy in order to find something to paint. However, all he succeeded in doing was getting some blood onto the wall. Eventually he headed back up to where Uryuu was, thinking maybe he could steal some of his creativity. He was good at art, or at least in Ichigo's opinion he was. It had been about a week since he had his surgery, meaning he was a little bit more mobile than he had been before. He wasn't in the best of shape, but better. He could hold up a conversation without falling asleep, so that was definitely an improvement. "Hey you.." he walked in and sat on the edge of the bed, "How are you feeling? Better I hope."

"What do you want?" Uryuu didn't even look up from his food. He wasn't eating it, just poking at it. He seemed like he was annoyed by Ichigo's question, maybe because he knew he was still weak and that made him frustrated. Uryuu never wanted to feel weak or like he couldn't do anything.

"I'm insulted that you think all I want are things from you..." he teased him, "Sometimes I just want to be around you."

"When you talk to me in that tone, I know you want something," he finally looked over to him. It was quite obvious that he was the woman of the relationship, but it was also quite obvious that he was also the one who wore the pants.

"Alright alright, so you caught me. I'm just really stuck on what to do for the mural project.." he admitted.

"And you want me to help you?" Uryuu raised an eyebrow.

"Why else would I ask you?" he replied simply.

"I dunno, maybe you were just going to vent to me?" he shrugged, "You never know."

"Well, that's not what the point of the conversation is," he shook his head, "Now, can you help me?"

"If by 'help you' you mean 'do it for you', then no," he went back to not eating his hospital food. He wondered if anyone was ever hospitalized longer for eating hospital food. When there was silence, Uryuu looked over to find Ichigo invading his personal space. "Er..what are you doing...?" he moved back a bit, but his lips were attacked and he was forced to stay where he was. Ichigo pushed him down on the bed, pushing his rolling table out of the way so he could get on top of him. Finally, Uryuu had to part for air, but Ichigo wasn't done yet.. He could feel Ichigo's hands were on his hips, so he put his hands on top. he could also feel Ichigo's lips travel from his mouth to his neck. Shivers ran down his spine as his skin was nipped and sucked on. He knew he was going to have many hickey's to hide after this. "I..Ichigo..." he rasped.

"Hmn?" his eyes moved upwards to look, but he didn't stop kissing him.

"it appears that you're quite good at convincing..." he sighed.

"That I am," he moved so that way he was staring at him from above. "Now, are you going to help me?" he asked, pulling him up and flipping around so Uryuu was sitting on his lap.

"Well, you're doing one for the kids right? Shouldn't be that hard, just need to do something that looks...happy," Uryuu shrugged.

"See, that's the thing. I don't do happy," he pointed out, "I'm just....me, and me isn't exactly rainbows and ponies."

"You don't 'do' happy? What the hell is that?" Uryuu frowned, "You sound like a plastic, except an opposite plastic. So I guess you'd be a wannabe rebel."

"Well, I'm not exactly and overtly happy person," he shrugged, "So no, I don't do happy. And in your opinion, that makes me a 'wannabe rebel'."

"So you're not even happy with me?" he pouted at him. Uryuu wasn't doing it because he was really a pouter, he was doing it to purposefully make Ichigo feel bad. He felt bad for doing it, but he just wanted to tug at his emotions a little bit. Even though Ichigo didn't want to admit he had them, Uryuu always wanted to prove that he did.

"Well, uh..er....I..I didn't mean it like that..it..uh..it's just..." he stuttered, but Uryuu smirked at him.

"Oh come now, you should know 'I don't do' the whole pouty thing," he chuckled a bit.

"Very funny....," he rolled his eyes and looked the other way.

"Don't get all pissy with me, I was kidding. On the topic of your mural, if you don't do happy, then do something involving the kids. And don't ask how, take it as you will," he he actually took a small bite of his food, and then remembered why he didn't eat it before.

"Fine, fine, I'll figure something out," he got up and kissed his forehead before leaving the room and heading back to work on it. He was fairly confident that he certainly would not figure something else, but who knows? When he got there, some kids were sitting around. They didn't appear to be doing too much. Ichigo went through them and set up his paints and other materials. As he did, he noticed the crowd of children around him began to grow. "Is something the matter?" he turned and asked them. They all shook their heads quickly. "You look kind of bored..." indeed, they did. They all looked like they hadn't had fun in forever.

"We are bored..." a little boy murmured, "We aren't allowed to do much..."

He raised an eyebrow, "You aren't?" They shook their heads quickly again. "Aren't there any colouring books our toys or anything?" he asked them.

"No, we're 'apposed to stay in our rooms all day.." a little girl said, "We can watch TV, but thas' it."

"So you get bored after a while, huh?" Ichigo raised an eyebrow. He looked back to his wall, and suddenly had an idea. A bit later, he had all the kids drawing in small sections. When they were finished, they put handprints and their names by their drawing. Ichigo worked on a title on the top half where none of them could reach. The nurses were amazed at how happy all the kids looked, but this happiness didn't last for long.

"Ah! !" one of the nurses said, "I..I swear we have nothing to do with this.." Ichigo looked over to see Ryuuken walking over, looking unamused as usual.

"What do you want?" Ichigo walked over to him, crossing his arms.

"My office. Now," he said sternly and walked away. Ichigo shook his head and helped the kids clean up the paint and materials before heading up to Ryuuken's office. It was at the ned of a long, white hall. There were no windows and no paintings on the walls. At the end of the hall was a secretary and a door behind her. Ichigo assumed that was where the office was. He told the secretary his name and sure enough, she told him to walk through the door that was behind her. He went in slowly and closed the door behind him. He was hesitant of walking any further, but Ryuuken beckoned for him to come closer. So he did. "When I gave the OK to do your little doodles on the wall, I expected you to just do it and go. Why, oh why were there children painting on the walls?" he asked, leaning against his desk.

"Because they were bored? Besides, it's the ward for the kids so I figured they should be part if it. It's not like they can't do it, they're perfectly capable of doing a lot of things other than sit there like a lump," Ichigo replied.

"Actually, they should. They're sick children," Ryuuken replied simply.

"While that may be true, they're still human. You don't seem to realize that."

"You better watch that mouth of yours, boy," Ryuuken warned him.

"Or what? There's nothing you can do that'll scare me," Ichigo crossed his arms.

"Really now? You think there is absolutely nothing I could do?" Ryuuken crossed his arms as well. Even though Ichigo was taller than him, he still seemed rather condescending.

"There is nothing you could do," Ichigo said simply, "Can I go now?"

"No, you can't. I put up with what you've been doing with my son that I'd rather not think about, but I will not tolerate you messing with my establishment," he pushed up his glasses. Where had Ichigo seen that before? he shook it from his mind as Ryuuken continued to speak, "You need to leave or there will be grave consequences."

"What are you going to do, bore me to death?" Ichigo rolled his eyes.

"Not by boredom, persay. Look behind you." As Ichigo did, he discovered that Ryuuken had backed him against the window. "Since you obviously don't seem to want to go away on your own, I'll have to rid of you myself. Next time, boy, you don't stick your nose where it doesn't belong. Then again, you won't live do see a next time."

"Hey, why did you-" before he could speak, he fell a shove and heard a crash. He felt like he was dreaming, he had to be dreaming. There was no way this was happening. Uryuu had mentioned that his father was a bit, how shall he put it, motivated, but would he really have the guts to do this? He closed his eyes, maybe if he fell asleep in his 'dream' he'd wake up. But alas, it didn't work that way. He could feel the breath being sucked out of him as he fell faster and faster, getting closer and closer to meeting his doom. He felt his whole body freeze and a sharp pain run through him. It wasn't long after that that his world went black as he fell into a state of unconsciousness.

Meanwhile, Uryuu was beginning to worry. Hours went by and Ichigo hadn't come back. Even if he was working on the mural, he would have been back to eat dinner with him. "Uhm..excuse me..." Uryuu said when a nurse came into his room.

"Yes dear, what is it?" she began to put on a new bag to feed his IV. He watched as the bag giggled in her hands. He was so tired from staying up worried that the littlest things distracted him from what he wanted to do.

"Have you seen Ichigo around? I'm starting to get worried about him," he asked simply. Maybe he was overreacting about all of this, but he had to know. The nurse suddenly stopped dead in her tracks, her arms up in the air holding the bag. "What is it?" he frowned, "Are you alright?"

"Y..Yes..." she went back to what he was doing.

"Then..what's with the reaction?" he raised an eyebrow.

"What reaction?! I didn't have a reaction!!" she shook, she seemed to be panicking.

"Alright, what the hell is going on?!"

"N..Nothing is going on!!!"

"Then why are you panicking?!?!"

"I'm so sorry!!!" she fell to her knees suddenly, "I swear I didn't have any part in this but we're not supposed to say what really happened!!!"

"What really happened?" Uryuu was confused as the nurse sobbed into his bed sheets, "What on earth are you talking about?" He was so confused that he could feel himself getting a headache. He just wanted to know why she was having a panic attack all of a sudden just at the mention of Ichigo's name. "Please...just tell me, I won't be mad at you. What could you possibly have done anyways?" he tried to reassure her so that way she'd tell him.

"It's about Ichigo...he's dying."

**~END CHAPTER 5~**


	6. Chapter 6

GUESS WHAT GUYZ. I came up with another fic idea, and I almost did it instead of this chapter. Don't worry, though, I wouldn't do that to you. Besides, this is the final chapter so I may as well finish it off. And aw cheesy ending is cheesy, haha.

ENJOY.

* * *

"W...What..?"

"I'm sorry, I know it's hard for you to take in, but it's the truth. Actually they said he should have died on impact, but by some grace of God he's alive. At least..for now," the nurse continued. Uryuu couldn't believe it. He felt like he was in some bad teen angst fan fiction or something.

_This isn't happening..this is NOT happening..I'm having some drug induced dream and it'll all be over soon..right...yes..that sounds plausible.... _Uryuu thought to himself. He started to bang his head against his small rolling table.

"Ah! Stop that! What are you doing?" the nurse tried to stop him.

"I'm trying to wake up. This is all a very bad dream," he replied, not stopping the steady rhythm of his head banging against the table.

"As much as I wish that was the case, it's not," she replied simply, "Look, as soon as they give the word I'll let you see him, all right?" He simply nodded slowly as he watched her leave. It was at least ten minuets since she left that Uryuu spent staring at the door. It was like his soul had been sucked out of him and he was just some sort of lifeless shell. He was still in the denial stage, no matter what the nurse said to him. He had to get out, he had to go see with his own two eyes. No way in hell this was happening. No. Fucking. Way. He slowly made his way out of the bed, swinging his legs over the side and slowly mustering up enough energy to stand on his own. This was a task easier said than done, usually if he did any major moving around Ichigo helped him. This only made him push harder to get out of the room. Ichigo had done so much for him, and now he had to do the same.

Once he had gotten do the door, he peered left and right. He had to be careful, since there were nurses everywhere who were tending to other patients. The trick would be to get to the elevator before one noticed. Again, it was easier said than done considering a crawling toddler could probably go faster than he could. Once it looked pretty clear, he started to head towards the elevator. No one saw him until he started to pass the nurses station. "Hey, what do you think you're doing?" one of them said.

"I'm taking a walk," he said casually, "Is that not allowed?"

"Unfortunately not. You need an escort to leave," she replied simply.

"Well, I'm not a child. I can handle myself, thank you."

"And you've proven time and time again that's simply not true," his father said. Why was it he seemed to show up at the worst times? Uryuu noticed that he did this quite often.

"What do you want?" he narrowed his eyes, "Don't you have money to steal from people?"

"Very funny. You're coming with me," he stated simply, "Let's go." Uryuu didn't know why, but he figured it didn't matter what his father wanted. He would be able to get some much needed information out of him if he went with him. There was one thing for sure, though. He hated taking the walk down the long hallway to get to his office. He always felt like something was going to jump out at him and hold him hostage. Nothing ever did, but that didn't mean they never could right? As they walked through the door into his office, he felt like something bad had happened there. It was like walking into the scene of a murder. He did notice, however, that it smelled like there had been some work done in the room. "Please, sit," he motioned towards the chair and sat in his own behind the desk. Uryuu hesitantly sat, watching his father. "So, I heard you've been doing well. I'm glad," he began.

"That's some bullshit if I ever heard it.." Uryuu muttered to himself.

"Now now, no need for profanities. I was simply making a comment. They think that we might be able to release you."

"Why? I can barely walk around."

"We'll give you a motorized wheelchair to use and you should be alright. How does that sound?"

Uryuu narrowed his eyes, "Why are you trying to be so nice to me? You never gave a shit before."

"Can't I start?"

"No."

Ryuuken sighed, "Look, we both want to get out of each others hair. Isn't that enough?"

"If this has to do with Ichigo.."

"Are you accusing me of something?" Ryuuken now narrowed his eyes back at Uryuu.

"No, but if you did do anything then you and me are going to have a little problem."

"Very well. You head back to your room and I'll have the chair delivered to you tomorrow so you can get back to school."

"Not so fast, you're taking me to Ichigo," Uryuu was determined.

"I'm sorry but I can't let you do that."

"That wasn't a question," he said simply.

Ryuuken sighed and rubbed his temples. He then pressed the button to call his secretary. "Can you please send a nurse up to escort Uryuu? Thank you."

"..You don't want me to tell, do you?" Uryuu suddenly said.

"Tell what?" he raised an eyebrow, "I wasn't aware that I had something to hide."

"You did this to him."

"Me? Why would I do that?" he shrugged, "He means nothing to me."

"He was in the way."

"I'm sorry, but I'm not quite sure I follow you," Ryuuken leaned forward.

"I wouldn't tell people of all the shit that goes on here. Ichigo, however, wouldn't stand for it. He would rat on you about the hospital and about me, and you didn't want him to jeopardize your success," he crossed his arms.

"Alright, fine. So you've blown it right open," Ryuuken leaned back in his chair, "But let me tell you this, you say one thing about this and let's just say your little boyfriend will accidentally get the wrong medication."

"Are you saying you're going to kill him?" Uryuu almost jumped out his his seat.

"So long as you keep your mouth shut, no," he turned around and faced his new full wall window. Uryuu thought he looked like a villain out of a movie. He looked over when the nurse came in to take him away, and he left without another word. Eventually, the nurse took him to Ichigo's room.

"You need to be quiet if he's asleep, let's just say he's been a little difficult..." the nurse tried to explain, but Uryuu believed every word of it. She opened the door and pushed him in, he now knew exactly what Ichigo must have felt like when he'd seen him. He didn't even look like a person, all bandaged up from head to toe. If this wasn't bad enough, the IVs didn't help the matter. He had quite a few, and Uryuu wondered if he really needed that much medication. "I'll leave you two alone and come back in a little bit to take you to your room," the nurse said as she pushed him up to the bed and left him there. Uryuu didn't really want to be alone, however. For some reason he felt strange being all alone in the room with him. He wasn't a different person or anything, he just felt strange. The other thing was he couldn't tell if Ichigo was asleep or awake. That made it awkward, because he didn't want to talk and wake him up but he didn't want to not talk and he get mad at him for being quiet. Uryuu finally decided that the best plan of action was to poke him gently. As he went to, however, Ichigo spoke.

"I'm awake you know," he uttered quietly. Uryuu jumped, almost falling out of the wheelchair.

"How did you know I was here?" he yelled, mad because he had scared him.

"You don't have to yell...and I heard the nurse. She woke me up with her annoying high pitched voice. Why do all nurses have annoying voices?" he started to rant, and Uryuu breathed a sigh of relief. At least he hadn't changed at all.

"So..are you okay?" Uryuu interrupted.

"Yes and no. I think I'm okay but no one else does," he replied, "Maybe that's what the medication is leading me to believe."

Uryuu laughed a bit, "Medication can do wonders to you, that's for sure.." Uryuu had laughed, but he was heartbroken inside. Even though he wasn't dead, it was almost worse to see him this way. Ichigo would always insist that he was alright, but Uryuu knew it wasn't the case.

Ichigo saw right through his fake laughter, "You don't need to pretend you're alright.."

"What are you talking about? Of course I'm alright.." Uryuu looked away from him, starting to crack now that he'd been exposed.

"Trust me, you're hurting more than I am. I can tell," he narrowed his eyes, "Come lie down with me."

"Why? Wouldn't that hurt you?" he looked over.

"One, I'm on so much medication I could walk outside and think the sky was purple. And two, even if I was I wouldn't really care," he said, yawning a bit. Cautiously, Uryuu slowly got up and laid down beside him. Despite the hospital setting, it felt rather nice. If he just closed his eyes, everything would disappear. They wouldn't be here, they'd be somewhere cheesy romantic like the beach. None of this would have ever happened and everything would be okay. They'd live in a world where everyone accepted them and it didn't matter if they were both guys or not. He didn't have to be embarrassed about how he felt. Oh God, what was he thinking? He felt like he was in a fanfiction again. Soon enough, one of his wishes was granted. He was going through the halls of the school, everyone watching him out of the corners of their eyes. He tried to ignore it as he rolled into the art room to grab some supplies for his mural. It seemed even the teacher was looking at him, but not for the same reasons.

"Are you sure you want those colours?" he said, eyeing the paints he had chosen skeptically.

"Yes, I'm sure," he replied, be he really wasn't. Something draw him to it and he wasn't sure what, so he figured it couldn't hurt to try.

"Well...alright.." the teacher didn't look impressed, but he said no more. Uryuu headed out to the wall and started to paint. He didn't know what exactly he was painting, but he just did. He was excused from other classes so he could finish this piece, since even though he was in the hospital he still maintained the highest grades. Eventually, he was finished and stared at his piece. The one side was shades of blue, and the other side was shades of red. In the middle the seemed to merge into a beautiful shade of purple. It didn't really mean anything to him, but he thought it looked pretty so he figured it wasn't all bad. His teacher, however, thought other wise.

"What is this?" he said. He didn't say it rudely, but you could tell he was being critical.

"Well..uhm..to be honest I'm not sure. I just started painting what I subconsciously felt like painting and this is what came out of it," he admitted, scratching the back of his head nervously.

"Well your subconscious was wrong. This piece shows absolutely nothing and the colours clash too much. Not to mention the brush strokes are terrible," the teacher didn't hold back and ripped right into it, "I'll take pity on you and give you a C since you've been sick and maybe the medication it still getting to you." Uryuu almost stopped breathing. A C? Who the hell did he think he was? _I'm Uryuu fucking Ishida, I don't get C's! _he thought to himself angrily, but on the outside he stayed his composed self as the teacher handed him a copy of the marking sheet and left. Slowly, Uryuu wheeled himself out of the school and went to the hospital. He hoped Ichigo was asleep so he could rant to him without him knowing. Unfortunately, he was wide awake.

"Hey, how was your first day back to hell?" he said, he was sitting up with the help of the bed.

"Fine," he said as he rolled up to his bed, but as always Ichigo saw right through him.

"Something happened, didn't it?" he asked.

"Why do you always do that?" Uryuu demanded.

"Do what? You're easy to read. Just because you think you're all calm on the outside doesn't mean that I can't tell you're pissed," he said simply, "As soon as you came in the room you just had the pissed feeling about you."

Uryuu sighed with a bit of a grumble, he had been found out again. "Well, I did my painting today and the teacher hated it. He said that the colours were shit, the blending was shit, and the strokes were shit," he went on a rant like Ichigo had the other day, describing his painting to give Ichigo a mental picture.

"Well I certainly hope he didn't swear or he's not a very good teacher.." Ichigo smirked, and Uryuu hit him, "Ow! Don't hurt the patient."

"Stick to the point, dumbass. You don't hate what I do! I'm good at everything!" he waved his arms around.

"Perhaps the teacher just didn't see past the painting," Ichigo said. Uryuu stared at him, confused. "He didn't look past the strokes of the brush, all he saw was the paint. He didn't see what was deeper into it," he continued.

"I..don't get it.." Uryuu said.

"You subconsciously painted a representation of us," Ichigo said, "Blue and red don't really go that well together, blue being a cool colour and red being a warm colour. However, when you put them together they blend to make purple. They may not seem likely, but when put together they make something new and beautiful." Uryuu stared at him in shock. Why didn't he think of that? "What, don't think I'm that deep?" he smirked, "I can think deep, y'know."

"No, I'm just wondering how you thought of that and I didn't...." he pouted, and Ichigo laughed. Ichigo was completely right. Brush strokes and paint don't necessarily make the painting, it's the emotion and the story behind it that makes a great painting. You can paint something beautiful, but if it has no feeling, then what was the point? That's what his relationship with Ichigo was. He could go out with some girl, get married, have kids, get a job, do everything a 'normal' person should. The thing was, he'd just be a blob with no emotion like his father. He would be what his teacher perceived his painting to be - boring. With Ichigo, life was exciting. He actually enjoyed himself (as much as he wouldn't admit it). He felt like he had some sort of purpose other than do be average joe. Sure, he could be normal. He could have painted some sort of trees for his painting and gotten an A. But normal is boring, and who wants that? He put meaning behind his brush strokes, and that was what was important.

**~THE END~**


End file.
